House assigns prosecutor to read impeachment articles in Senate
Only one of the 11 members of the House of Representatives’ prosecution panel would read the articles of impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte when the Senate resumes its session on June 2. (VP Sara Duterte impeachment composite image from Inquirer files)
MANILA, Philippines — Only one of the 11 House of Representatives’ prosecutors would read the articles of impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte when the Senate resumes its session on June 2.
Iloilo 3rd District Rep. Lorenz Defensor, a member of the prosecution panel, said this on Wednesday, noting they had already agreed on the prosecutor who would present the articles before the Senate, but declined to identify the latter.
“We had a meeting earlier this week regarding the June 2 presentation of the articles of impeachment. We confirmed receipt of the communication by the Senate requesting that the prosecution team present the articles of impeachment,” Defensor said in an interview with reporters.
“And while I did not personally have the chance to speak with any of the senator-judges, I understand based on the agreement between the House of Representatives and the Senate that one prosecutor will be asked to read the seven articles of impeachment during the June 2 session of the Senate,” he added.
Under the invitation from Senate President Francis Escudero, the House prosecution team will present the articles of impeachment before the Senate plenary on Monday, June 2, when the 19th Congress resumes its session.
While this will not yet be the formal start of the trial, the Senate is expected to convene as an impeachment court the next day, on June 3.
READ: House receives Senate notice on start of VP Duterte’s impeachment trial
According to Defensor, not all 11 prosecutors were required to attend the presentation of the articles of impeachment.
“No, I did not receive any instruction that all prosecutors are required to attend the June 2 session. But only one prosecutor will be required to read the seven articles of impeachment,” he said. “You’ll find out on June 2 which one.”
The following are the other 10 members of the prosecution team:
- Batangas 2nd District Rep. Gerville Luistro
- Antipolo 2nd District Rep. Romeo Acop
- 1-Rider party-list Rep. Rodge Gutierrez
- Manila 3rd District Rep. Joel Chua
- Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Raul Angelo Bongalon
- General Santos City Rep. Loreto Acharon
- 4Ps party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan
- Oriental Mindoro 1st District Rep. Arnan Panaligan
- San Juan City Rep. Ysabel Maria Zamora
The articles of impeachment are the grounds on which an impeachable officer, in this case, Vice President Duterte, was impeached.
READ: Duterte’s threats, misuse of secret funds are grounds in 4th complaint
Under the verified impeachment complaint approved by the House last February 5, seven articles were submitted and these allegations include the following:
- her threats to assassinate President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, and Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez
- misuse of confidential funds within the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Office of the Vice President (OVP
- bribery within the DepEd
- violation of the 1987 Constitution and betrayal of public trust due to unexplained wealth and failure to disclose assets
- commission of high crimes, due to involvement in extrajudicial killings in the drug war
- destabilization plots and high crimes of sedition and insurrection, and betrayal of acts due to her unbecoming conduct as Vice President.
/coa
